Exsanguination preventing device

Abstract

In one embodiment, an exsanguination preventing device includes a collection container having an inlet configured to receive blood from a patient and an outlet configured to discharge the blood; a pump operatively coupled to the collection container; a conduit fluidly coupled to the collection container, which receives the blood from the collection container, the blood being moved by the pump; and an insertion device, which delivers the blood from the conduit to a bodily part of the patient. The collection container is configured to be sealingly coupled to a wound on the patient and air entrapped within the exsanguination preventing device is removed by an air removal system, such to prevent unwanted discharge of air into the bodily part of the patient. All the components of the exsanguination preventing device are sized such to make it portable in a pocket of a garment or backpack of a soldier.

Description

FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0001]The present invention relates to a device that prevents exsanguination. More particularly, the present invention relates to a device that prevents exsanguination of a patient by recirculating autologous blood into the body of the patient.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]Exsanguination (colloquially known as bleeding out) is the fatal process of blood loss to an amount that causes death.[0003]A typical cause of exsanguinations is traumatic injury where blood loss cannot be arrested. For example, exsanguination is the leading cause of death on a battlefield. Non-battlefield causes can include murder by shooting or stabbing; motor vehicle accidents; suicide by cutting arteries; and partial or complete amputation of limbs due to workplace accidents.[0004]A victim does not have to lose all of his (her) blood to cause death. Depending upon the age, health, and fitness level of the individual, a victim may die from losing half or two-thirds of their blood. In ba...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0007]The present invention prevents exsanguination by use of a blood recirculating system that keeps a victim alive, for example, when an arterial laceration occurs. In one embodiment, particularly suited for military applications, an exsanguination preventing device according to the invention is simple to use and of a size that allows high portability, such that it can be carried by a potential user (for example, a soldier) together with other supplies in a pocket of a garment (which includes a pocket attached to a belt), or of a backpack, or within similar equipment. That system is suited for use by operators of different skill levels, for example, by a medic, a fellow soldier that has received adequate training, or the victim himself.

[0008]By using an exsanguination preventing device according to the invention, loss of blood is slowed or completely stopped by closing the circuit opened by the injury, which otherwise would cause an excessive loss of blood. With such a device, the life of the patient is saved by allowing him to survive until he is delivered to an operating room.

[0009]One embodiment of the invention includes the use of different attachments and power system, by which an exsanguination preventing device according to the invention can be maintained operational with different power sources while continuing to operate effectively, for example, by switching seamlessly from battery power to power provided by a power source in an ambulance or transport helicopter.

[0013]In one embodiment, the collection container has a decanter shape with a narrower portion in the proximity of the inlet, which gradually expands to form a wider base where the collected blood is stored. This configuration facilitates a positioning of the collection container on a surface, for example on the ground during field use. Further, the base of the collection container may have a larger weight than the upper portion, to ensure that the blood collects where the outlet of the collection container is situated.

[0026]An oxygenating device may also be included that provides oxygen to the blood. One such oxygenating system is based on pumping blood through hollow plastic fibers perforated with holes so tiny that only gas molecules can pass through them. As blood filters through the fibers, carbon dioxide escapes through the holes and is replaced by oxygen in the air or provided to the system. Preferably, such an oxygenation device is spliced inline within the delivery conduit, for example, using quick connect / disconnect fittings as joining points along the delivery conduit to allow for quick installation and removal.

Problems solved by technology

A typical cause of exsanguinations is traumatic injury where blood loss cannot be arrested.

In battlefield situations, blood loss of an injured soldier may not be arrested to a sufficient degree during combat or in field hospitals, and blood loss to a fatal amount may occur during transport to a care center.

Those systems, however, are bulky and not particularly suited for use in a battlefield, or in other emergency situations such as a fire rescue or an accident in a remote location where trained personnel or hospital equipment may not be readily available.

In those situations, application to the patient of a system in the prior art may be difficult; and air or dirt may become trapped within the system and be lethal to the patient; or blood recirculation may be defective, exposing the patient to the risk of oxygen deprivation and permanent damage.

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